CN111447608B

CN111447608B - Communication method and device

Info

Publication number: CN111447608B
Application number: CN201910045274.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李秉肇; 邝奕如; 赵旸
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-01-17
Filing date: 2019-01-17
Publication date: 2022-05-13
Anticipated expiration: 2039-01-17
Also published as: CN111447608A; WO2020147730A1

Abstract

The embodiment of the application provides a communication method and device, relates to the field of communication, and can solve the problem that the base station cannot correctly or comprehensively know all capabilities of UE or specific capabilities of the UE due to improper setting of filtering parameters. The method comprises the following steps: when the access network equipment needs to acquire the capability information of the terminal equipment, the access network equipment can send a capability request to the terminal equipment, wherein the capability request comprises capability reporting indication information, and the capability reporting indication information is used for indicating a capability reporting range; after receiving the capability request, the terminal equipment determines capability information according to the capability reporting range and sends the capability information to the access network equipment; and after receiving the capability information of the terminal equipment, the access network equipment sends the capability information to the core network equipment. The embodiment of the application is applied to the scene of capability reporting of the terminal equipment.

Description

Communication method and device

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communications, and in particular, to a communication method and apparatus.

Background

Currently, different User Equipments (UEs) in the market can support different Radio Access Technology (RAT) capabilities due to different hardware or software versions. To better serve the UEs, the network needs to know the capabilities of each UE in order to configure the UE with the appropriate operating mode. The network may request the UE to report capabilities for different RAT types (types). Such as requesting the UE to report related capabilities for supporting Long Term Evolution (LTE), New Radio (NR), or multi-RAT dual connectivity (MR-DC).

When the Core Network (CN) does not acquire the UE capability, the UE capability is not sent to the base station, and at this time, the base station may request the capability from the UE. However, the base station generally requests the UE for the capability related to the base station, and as shown in fig. 1, the base station may set a filtering parameter related to the base station in the capability request, for example, the filtering parameter may be set to the bandwidth information supported by the base station. After receiving the capability request, the terminal device may report the corresponding capability information according to the filtering parameter. In some scenarios, when the network needs to acquire the full capability of the UE or the specific capability of the UE (for example, the capability corresponding to the capability identifier of the terminal), the base station may set an inappropriate filtering parameter, so that the network cannot correctly or comprehensively know the full capability of the UE or the specific capability of the UE.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides a communication method and device, which can solve the problem that the base station cannot correctly or comprehensively acquire all capabilities of UE or specific capabilities of the UE due to the fact that improper filtering parameters are set.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, where the method is applied to an access network device or a chip of the access network device, and the method includes: the access network equipment sends a capacity request to the terminal equipment, wherein the capacity request comprises capacity reporting indication information which is used for indicating a capacity reporting range; the access network equipment receives the capability information from the terminal equipment, wherein the capability information corresponds to a capability reporting range; and the access network equipment sends the capability information to the core network equipment.

Based on the method provided by the embodiment of the application, when a network needs to acquire all capabilities of the UE or specific capabilities of the UE (for example, capabilities corresponding to the capability identifier of the terminal), the access network device may accurately indicate the capability reporting range of the terminal device through the capability reporting indication information instead of sending the filtering parameters to the terminal device according to the capabilities of the access network device, and the terminal device determines the capability information according to the capability reporting range and sends the capability information to the access network device. Therefore, the method provided by the embodiment of the application can solve the problem that the base station cannot correctly or comprehensively acquire the whole capability of the UE or the specific capability of the UE due to the fact that the improper filtering parameters are set.

In a possible implementation manner, the capability reporting indication information is used to indicate at least one of reporting capability complete set, a characteristic set, capability information corresponding to a capability identifier, or capability information corresponding to a filtering parameter.

In one possible design, the capability reporting indication information includes at least one of capability corpus indication information, feature set indication information, capability identifier indication information, or filtering parameters. The capability complete set indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to report all capability information of the terminal equipment. The characteristic set indication information may be used to indicate that the terminal device carries characteristic set information supported by itself in the LTE system or the NR system or the MR-DC system when the capability is reported. The capability identifier indication information indicates the terminal device to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier, where the first capability set information may be preconfigured on the terminal device. And the filtering parameter indicates the terminal equipment to report the bandwidth (band) combination and characteristic set information supported by the terminal equipment. Therefore, the access network equipment can accurately indicate the capacity reporting range of the terminal equipment through the capacity reporting indication information, and the problem that the base station cannot correctly or comprehensively acquire all the capacity of the UE or the specific capacity of the UE due to the fact that the base station sets the improper filtering parameters is solved.

In one possible implementation, the filtering parameter includes at least one of bandwidth information, frequency band information, or Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) information. In one aspect, the bandwidth information, the frequency band information, or the PLMN information may be an indication information or an identifier, respectively. The bandwidth information is used for indicating the terminal device to report all bandwidth information supported by the terminal device, the frequency band information is used for indicating the terminal device to report frequency band information on each bandwidth supported by the terminal device, and the PLMN information is used for indicating the terminal device to report the capability related to the frequency band used by the PLMN supported by the terminal device. On the other hand, the filtering parameter may carry specific bandwidth information, frequency band information, or PLMN information, which is not completely determined according to the capability of the base station, and the terminal device determines the range of the reporting capability set according to the bandwidth information, frequency band information, or PLMN information. Therefore, the access network equipment can accurately indicate the capability reporting range of the terminal equipment through the filtering parameters, and the problem that the base station cannot correctly or comprehensively acquire all the capabilities of the UE or the specific capabilities of the UE due to the fact that the improper filtering parameters are set is solved.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the access network equipment receives first indication information sent by the core network equipment, wherein the first indication information is used for determining capability reporting indication information.

In a possible implementation manner, the first indication information is used to indicate at least one of a capability complete set request, a characteristic set setting reference information, a capability reporting request based on a capability identifier, or a filtering parameter setting reference information. Optionally, the first indication information includes at least one of a capability corpus request indication, characteristic set setting reference information, a capability identifier, or filtering parameter setting reference information.

In a possible implementation manner, there is a corresponding relationship between the first indication information and the capability reporting indication information. Therefore, the access network equipment can determine the capability reporting indication information according to the first indication information and accurately indicate the capability reporting range of the terminal equipment through the capability reporting indication information, so that the problem that the base station cannot correctly or comprehensively know all the capability of the UE or the specific capability of the UE due to improper filtering parameter setting is avoided.

In a possible implementation manner, a correspondence between the first indication information and the capability reporting indication information satisfies at least one of the following: the first indication information indicates first filtering parameter setting reference information, the capability reporting indication information indicates that capability information corresponding to the first filtering parameter is reported, and the first filtering parameter corresponds to the first filtering parameter setting reference information; the first indication information indicates that the first characteristic set sets reference information, the capability reporting indication information indicates that the first characteristic set is reported, and the first characteristic set corresponds to the first characteristic set information setting reference information; the first indication information indicates a capability reporting request based on a first capability identifier, the capability reporting indication information indicates that at least one of capability information corresponding to the first capability identifier, a second characteristic set or capability information corresponding to a second filtering parameter is reported, and the second characteristic set or the second filtering parameter corresponds to the first capability identifier; the first indication information indicates a capability complete set request, the capability reporting indication information indicates at least one of reporting capability information corresponding to a capability complete set, a third characteristic set or a third filtering parameter, and the third characteristic set or the third filtering parameter corresponds to the capability complete set request.

In a possible implementation manner, the capability reporting indication information includes capability identifier indication information, where the capability identifier indication information includes a first capability identifier, or the capability identifier indication information includes indication information used for indicating to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier; the access network equipment receiving the capability information from the terminal equipment comprises the following steps: the access network equipment receives the capability information from the terminal equipment, wherein the capability information comprises first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identification.

Further optionally, the capability identifier indication information is a first capability identifier or the capability identifier indication information is indication information used for indicating that first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier is reported.

In this application, when a network needs to acquire all capabilities of a UE or specific capabilities of the UE (for example, capabilities corresponding to a capability identifier of a terminal), a core network device may set first indication information for indicating at least one of a capability complete set request, a feature set setting reference information, a capability reporting request based on the capability identifier, or a filtering parameter setting reference information; the access network device may determine capability reporting indication information according to the first indication information, where the capability reporting indication information is used to indicate at least one of capability information corresponding to a reporting capability complete set, a characteristic set, a capability identifier, or capability information corresponding to a filtering parameter. Therefore, the capability reporting range of the terminal equipment can be accurately indicated through the capability reporting indication information, and the problem that the base station cannot correctly or comprehensively know all the capability of the UE or the specific capability of the UE due to the fact that the base station sets the improper filtering parameters is solved.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for reporting a terminal capability, where the method is applied to a terminal device or a chip of the terminal device, and the method includes: the terminal equipment receives a capacity request from the access network equipment, wherein the capacity request comprises capacity reporting indication information; and the terminal equipment sends the capability information to the access network equipment according to the capability reporting indication information.

In one possible implementation, the filtering parameter includes at least one of bandwidth information, frequency band information, or PLMN information.

In a possible implementation manner, the capability reporting indication information indicates to report capability information corresponding to the first capability identifier, where the capability information includes first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier; the capability reporting indication information indicates that capability information corresponding to the first filtering parameter is reported, and the capability information comprises second capability set information corresponding to the first filtering parameter; the capability reporting indication information indicates reporting of the characteristic set, and the capability information comprises characteristic set information supported by the terminal equipment; and/or the capability reporting indication information indicates a reporting capability complete set, and the capability information comprises all capability information supported by the terminal equipment.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the terminal device sends a first capability identifier to the access network device or the core network device, wherein the first capability identifier corresponds to first capability set information, and the first capability set information is preconfigured.

In a possible implementation manner, the capability reporting indication information includes capability identifier indication information, where the capability identifier indication information includes a first capability identifier, or the capability identifier indication information includes indication information used for indicating to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier; the terminal equipment sends the capability information to the access network equipment according to the capability reporting indication information, and the capability information comprises the following steps: and the terminal equipment sends the capability information to the access network equipment according to the capability identification indication information, wherein the capability information comprises first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identification.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, where the method is applied to a core network device or a chip of the core network device, and the method includes: the core network equipment sends first indication information to the access network equipment, wherein the first indication information is used for indicating a capability reporting range; the core network equipment receives the capability information of the terminal equipment from the access network equipment, and the capability information corresponds to the capability reporting range.

In a possible implementation manner, the first indication information is used to indicate at least one of a capability complete set request, a characteristic set setting reference information, a capability reporting request based on a capability identifier, or a filtering parameter setting reference information.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the core network device receives a first capability identifier from the terminal device, wherein the first capability identifier corresponds to first capability set information, and the first capability set information is preconfigured.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: and the core network equipment sends a second capability identifier to the terminal equipment, wherein the second capability identifier corresponds to the capability information of the terminal equipment.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, including: a sending unit, configured to send a capability request to a terminal device, where the capability request includes capability reporting indication information, and the capability reporting indication information is used to indicate a capability reporting range; the receiving unit is used for receiving the capability information from the terminal equipment, and the capability information corresponds to the capability reporting range; and the sending unit is also used for sending the capability information to the core network equipment.

In a possible implementation manner, the receiving unit is further configured to receive first indication information sent by the core network device, where the first indication information is used to determine capability reporting indication information.

In a possible implementation manner, there is a corresponding relationship between the first indication information and the capability reporting indication information.

In a possible implementation manner, a correspondence between the first indication information and the capability reporting indication information satisfies at least one of the following: the first indication information indicates first filtering parameter setting reference information, the capability reporting indication information indicates that capability information corresponding to the first filtering parameter is reported, and the first filtering parameter corresponds to the first filtering parameter setting reference information; the first indication information indicates that the first characteristic set sets reference information, the capability reporting indication information indicates that the first characteristic set is reported, and the first characteristic set corresponds to the first characteristic set information setting reference information; the first indication information indicates a capability reporting request based on a first capability identifier, the capability reporting indication information indicates that at least one of capability information corresponding to the first capability identifier, a second characteristic set or capability information corresponding to a second filtering parameter is reported, and the second characteristic set or the second filtering parameter corresponds to the first capability identifier; the first indication information indicates a capability complete set request, the capability reporting indication information indicates at least one of capability information corresponding to a reporting capability complete set, a third characteristic set or a third filtering parameter, and the third characteristic set or the third filtering parameter corresponds to the capability complete set request.

In a possible implementation manner, the capability reporting indication information includes capability identifier indication information, where the capability identifier indication information includes a first capability identifier, or the capability identifier indication information includes indication information used for indicating to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier; a receiving unit, configured to receive capability information from a terminal device, where the capability information includes first capability set information corresponding to a first capability identifier.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, including: a receiving unit, configured to receive a capability request from an access network device, where the capability request includes capability reporting indication information; and the sending unit is used for sending the capability information to the access network equipment according to the capability reporting indication information.

In a possible implementation manner, the capability reporting indication information is used to indicate at least one of reporting a capability complete set, a feature set, capability information corresponding to a capability identifier, or capability information corresponding to a filtering parameter.

In a possible implementation manner, the sending unit is further configured to send a first capability identifier to the access network device or the core network device, where the first capability identifier corresponds to first capability set information, and the first capability set information is preconfigured.

In a possible implementation manner, the capability reporting indication information includes capability identifier indication information, where the capability identifier indication information includes a first capability identifier, or the capability identifier indication information includes indication information used for indicating to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier; and the sending unit is used for sending the capability information to the access network equipment according to the capability identifier indication information, wherein the capability information comprises first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier.

In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, including: a sending unit, configured to send first indication information to an access network device, where the first indication information is used to determine an indication capability reporting range; and the receiving unit is used for receiving the capability information of the terminal equipment from the access network equipment, wherein the capability information corresponds to the capability reporting range.

In a possible implementation manner, the receiving unit is further configured to receive a first capability identifier from the terminal device, where the first capability identifier corresponds to the first capability set information, and the first capability set information is preconfigured.

In a possible implementation manner, the sending unit is further configured to send a second capability identifier to the terminal device, where the second capability identifier corresponds to the capability information of the terminal device.

In a seventh aspect, an apparatus is provided, comprising: a processor and a memory; the memory is configured to store computer executable instructions, and the processor executes the computer executable instructions stored in the memory, so as to enable the apparatus to perform the communication method according to any one of the first aspect, the capability reporting method according to any one of the second aspect, or the communication method according to any one of the third aspect.

In an eighth aspect, there is provided a communication apparatus comprising: a processor; the processor is configured to be coupled to the memory, and after reading the instruction in the memory, execute the communication method according to any one of the first aspect, the capability reporting method according to any one of the second aspect, or the communication method according to any one of the third aspect.

A ninth aspect provides a computer-readable storage medium, having instructions stored therein, which when run on a computer, enable the computer to perform the communication method of any one of the first aspect, the capability reporting method of any one of the second aspect, or the communication method of any one of the third aspect.

A tenth aspect provides a computer program product comprising instructions which, when run on a computer, enable the computer to perform the communication method of any one of the first aspect, the capability reporting method of any one of the second aspect, or the communication method of any one of the third aspect.

In an eleventh aspect, there is provided circuitry comprising processing circuitry configured to perform the communication method of any one of the first aspect, the capability reporting method of any one of the second aspect, or the communication method of any one of the third aspect.

In a twelfth aspect, a chip is provided, where the chip includes a processor, the processor is coupled with a memory, and the memory stores program instructions, and when the program instructions stored in the memory are executed by the processor, the communication method of any one of the first aspect, the capability reporting method of any one of the second aspect, or the communication method of any one of the third aspect is implemented.

In a thirteenth aspect, there is provided a communication system comprising the communication apparatus in any one of the fourth, fifth and sixth aspects.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a prior art signaling interaction of a capability request method;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a signal interaction of a method for obtaining capability information according to a capability identifier;

fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of a system architecture suitable for a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of an access network device or a core network device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is a schematic signal interaction diagram suitable for a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is a schematic signal interaction diagram suitable for a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of another access network device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of another terminal device provided in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of another core network device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

For clarity and conciseness of the following description of the various embodiments, a brief introduction to related concepts or technologies is first presented:

UE capability structure in the fifth generation (5th generation, 5G) NR: the UE capability structure of the 5G NR may include bandwidth information (band combination) and characteristic set information supported by the UE in the NR. The UE capability structure of the 5G NR may also include other radio frequency capabilities, physical capabilities, measurement capabilities, etc.

UE capability structure in LTE: the UE capability structure of LTE may include band combination and feature set information supported by the UE in LTE. The UE capability structure of LTE may also include other radio frequency capabilities, physical capabilities, measurement capabilities, and the like.

UE capability structure in EN-DC: the UE capability structure of the EN-DC comprises three capabilities of LTE, MR-DC and NR. The network needs to acquire the band combination in MR-DC capability, the feature set information in LTE capability, and the feature set information in NR capability to fully acquire the capability of EN-DC. Currently, when a base station requests UE for feature set information in LTE capability, NR and LTE band need to be carried in filtering parameters. However, the network may not be able to correctly or fully know the UE capability of the EN-DC because the base station may set inappropriate filtering parameters.

Capability identification (capability ID): due to the large structural reporting amount of the UE capability, the overhead of capability reporting is too large. Therefore, a reporting method based on capability identification is provided. A capability identification may be used to identify a specific set of capabilities. For example, a capability identity may relate to the capabilities of a particular class of UE. Therefore, the same type of UE can report the capability information only once, and each UE does not need to report the capability information once independently.

Optionally, the capability identifier may also be referred to as a capability set identifier, a capability combination identifier, a capability model identifier, etc., as long as the concept for identifying a specific set of capability sets conforms to the definition of the capability identifier in this document, which is not limited in this application.

As shown in fig. 2, the UE may report the capability identifier of the UE to the core network, and if the core network has stored the capability corresponding to the capability identifier, the core network no longer requires the UE to report the capability. If the core network does not store the capability corresponding to the capability identifier, the core network needs to request the capability from the UE, record the capability and the capability identifier, and then do not request any more. However, the base station may set an inappropriate filtering parameter, so that the acquired UE capability may not be matched with the capability identifier.

The embodiment of the application provides a communication method and a terminal capability reporting method, which are applied to a scenario of capability reporting of terminal equipment in communication systems such as NR, LTE or MR-DC. The MR-DC may include NE-DC, EN-DC, NGEN-DC, and the like, among others. Wherein, DC represents dual connectivity, E represents evolved-UMTS terrestrial radio access (E-UTRA), i.e. a fourth generation (4th generation, 4G) radio access network, i.e. a Long Term Evolution (LTE) radio access network; n represents NR, i.e. 5G NR; NG stands for next generation core (next generation core), i.e. 5G core. EN-DC refers to dual connectivity of a 4G radio access network with a 5G NR. That is, in an EN-DC scenario, a UE connects to an LTE base station (e.g., eNB) and an NR base station (e.g., gNB) at the same time, while being served by both base stations, where the LTE base station is a Master Node (MN). NE-DC refers to double connection of 5G NR and 4G radio access network, and NR base station is the main node. NGEN-DC refers to dual connectivity of a 4G radio access network with a 5G NR under a 5G core network, with a 4G base station (LTE base station, e.g., eNB) being the master node.

As shown in fig. 3, a system architecture diagram applicable to a communication method and a capability reporting method provided in the embodiment of the present application includes an access network device, a core network device, and a terminal device. The access network equipment can send a capacity request to the terminal equipment, wherein the capacity request comprises capacity reporting indication information, and the capacity reporting indication information is used for indicating a capacity reporting range; after receiving the capability request, the terminal equipment reports capability information to the access network equipment, wherein the capability information corresponds to a capability reporting range; the access network device sends the capability information to the core network device, which may store the capability information.

The terminal device may also be referred to as a terminal (terminal), a UE, a Mobile Station (MS), a Mobile Terminal (MT), or the like. The terminal device may be a mobile phone (mobile phone), a tablet computer (Pad), a computer with wireless transceiving function, a Virtual Reality (VR) terminal device, an Augmented Reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal in industrial control (industrial control), a wireless terminal in self driving (self driving), a wireless terminal in remote surgery (remote medical supply), a wireless terminal in smart grid (smart grid), a wireless terminal in transportation safety (transportation safety), a wireless terminal in smart city (smart city), a wireless terminal in smart home (smart home), and so on. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific technology and the specific device form adopted by the terminal device.

The RAN devices correspond to different devices in different systems. For example, in a 2th generation (2G) communication system, RAN devices may correspond to base stations and base station controllers; RAN equipment may correspond to a base station and a Radio Network Controller (RNC) in a third generation (3G) communication system; in 4G the RAN device may correspond to an eNB; in 5G, the RAN device may correspond to a gNB, a Centralized Unit (CU), a Distributed Unit (DU), or the like.

The CN equipment corresponds to different equipment in different systems. For example, in 3G, the Serving GPRS Support Node (SGSN) and/or the Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN) may correspond to a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS); the 4G may correspond to a Mobility Management Entity (MME) and/or a serving gateway (S-GW); there is no formal name in 5G, such as may correspond to NG-Core.

Optionally, the terminal device, the core network device, or the access network device in this embodiment of the application may be implemented by one device, may also be implemented by multiple devices together, and may also be a functional module in one device, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the application. It is understood that the above functions may be either network elements in a hardware device, software functions running on dedicated hardware, or virtualized functions instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform).

For example, the apparatus for implementing the functions of the terminal device provided in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented by the apparatus 400 in fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a schematic hardware structure diagram of an apparatus 400 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The apparatus 400 includes at least one processor 401 for implementing the functions of the terminal device provided in the embodiments of the present application. Also included in the apparatus 400 is a bus 402 and at least one communication interface 404. The apparatus 400 may also include a memory 403.

In the embodiment of the present application, the processor may be a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a general purpose processor, a Network Processor (NP), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a Programmable Logic Device (PLD), or any combination thereof. The processor may also be any other means having a processing function such as a circuit, device or software module.

Bus 402 may be used to transfer information between the above components.

A communication interface 404 for communicating with other devices or communication networks, such as ethernet, Radio Access Network (RAN), Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), etc. The communication interface 404 may be an interface, a circuit, a transceiver, or other device capable of implementing communication, and is not limited in this application. The communication interface 404 may be coupled to the processor 401. The coupling in the embodiments of the present application is an indirect coupling or a communication connection between devices, units or modules, and may be an electrical, mechanical or other form for information interaction between the devices, units or modules. It should be noted that, in the embodiment of the present application, when the terminal device serves as a receiving-end device, the transceiver may be replaced by a receiver, and when the terminal device serves as a sending-end device, the transceiver may be replaced by a transmitter. Of course, it is not excluded that the terminal device has both a transmitting function and a receiving function, i.e. includes the above-mentioned transceiver, regardless of whether the terminal device is used as a receiving end device or as a transmitting end device.

In the embodiments of the present application, the memory may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and instructions, a Random Access Memory (RAM) or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and instructions, an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact-disc-read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compact disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, blu-ray disc, etc.), magnetic disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited to such. The memory may be stand alone or coupled to the processor, such as through bus 402. The memory may also be integral to the processor.

The memory 403 is used for storing program instructions and can be controlled by the processor 401 to execute, so as to implement the communication method provided by the following embodiments of the present application. The processor 401 is configured to call and execute instructions stored in the memory 403, so as to implement the communication method provided by the following embodiments of the present application.

Optionally, the computer-executable instructions in the embodiments of the present application may also be referred to as application program codes, which are not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present application.

Optionally, the memory 403 may be included in the processor 401.

In particular implementations, processor 401 may include one or more CPUs such as CPU0 and CPU1 in fig. 4 as an example.

In particular implementations, apparatus 400 may include multiple processors, such as processor 401 and processor 407 in FIG. 4, for example, as an example. Each of these processors may be a single-core (single-CPU) processor or a multi-core (multi-CPU) processor. A processor herein may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and/or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

In one implementation, the apparatus 400 may further include an output device 405 and an input device 406, as an example. An output device 405 is coupled to the processor 401 and may display information in a variety of ways. For example, the output device 405 may be a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), a Light Emitting Diode (LED) display device, a Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) display device, a projector (projector), or the like. An input device 406 is coupled to the processor 401 and may receive user input in a variety of ways. For example, the input device 406 may be a mouse, a keyboard, a touch screen device, or a sensing device, among others.

The apparatus 400 may be a general-purpose device or a special-purpose device. In a specific implementation, the terminal device 400 may be a desktop, a laptop, a web server, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a mobile phone, a tablet, a wireless terminal device, an embedded device, or a device with a similar structure as in fig. 4. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the type of the apparatus 400.

For example, an apparatus for implementing the functions of an access network device or a core network device provided in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented by the apparatus 500 in fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a schematic hardware configuration diagram of an apparatus 500 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The apparatus 500 includes at least one processor 501 for implementing the functions of the terminal device provided in the embodiments of the present application. Also included in the apparatus 500 is a bus 502 and at least one communication interface 504. The apparatus 500 may also include a memory 503.

Bus 502 may be used to transfer information between the above components.

A communication interface 504 for communicating with other devices or a communication network, such as ethernet, RAN, WLAN, etc. The communication interface 504 may be an interface, a circuit, a transceiver, or other device capable of enabling communication, and is not limited in this application. The communication interface 504 may be coupled to the processor 501. It should be noted that, in this embodiment of the application, when the access network device or the core network device serves as a receiving end device, the transceiver may be replaced by a receiver, and when the access network device or the core network device serves as a sending end device, the transceiver may be replaced by a transmitter. Of course, it is not excluded that the access network device or the core network device has both the transmitting function and the receiving function, that is, the transceiver is included, no matter the access network device or the core network device is used as the receiving end device or the transmitting end device.

The memory 503 is used for storing program instructions, and can be controlled by the processor 501 to execute, so as to implement the communication method provided by the following embodiments of the present application. For example, the processor 501 is configured to call and execute instructions stored in the memory 503, so as to implement the communication method provided by the following embodiments of the present application.

Optionally, the memory 503 may be included in the processor 501.

In particular implementations, processor 501 may include one or more CPUs such as CPU0 and CPU1 in fig. 5 as an example.

In particular implementations, apparatus 500 may include multiple processors, such as processor 501 and processor 505 in FIG. 5, for example, as an example. Each of these processors may be a single core processor or a multi-core processor. A processor herein may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and/or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. In the description of the present application, unless otherwise specified, "at least one" means one or more, "a plurality" means two or more. In addition, in order to facilitate clear description of technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, in the embodiments of the present application, terms such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish the same items or similar items having substantially the same functions and actions. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the terms "first," "second," etc. do not denote any order or quantity, nor do the terms "first," "second," etc. denote any order or importance.

It should be noted that, in the following embodiments of the present application, names of messages between devices or names of parameters in messages are only an example, and other names may also be used in a specific implementation, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.

For the sake of understanding, the communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application is specifically described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in fig. 6, the embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, which includes steps 601 and 606. The communication method comprises a terminal capability reporting method.

601. The access network equipment sends a capacity request to the terminal equipment, wherein the capacity request comprises capacity reporting indication information, and the capacity reporting indication information is used for indicating a capacity reporting range.

After the terminal device accesses the access network device, the access network device may send a capability request to the terminal device. The capability request may be transmitted via a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message, such as a capability request message, a capability query message, and the like. Alternatively, the capability request may be carried in an existing RRC message, for example, a capability request field is carried in the RRC connection setup or the RRC reconfiguration to request the terminal device to perform capability reporting.

The capability reporting indication information is used for indicating at least one of reporting capability complete set, characteristic set, capability information corresponding to the capability identifier or capability information corresponding to the filtering parameter.

In one possible design, the capability reporting indication information includes at least one of capability complete set indication information, feature set indication information, capability identifier indication information (e.g., a capability identifier or indication information indicating capability information corresponding to the reporting capability identifier), or filtering parameters. For example, when the capability reporting indication information is used to indicate reporting of the capability complete set, the capability reporting indication information may include capability complete set indication information; when the capability reporting indication information is used for indicating to report the characteristic set, the capability reporting indication information may include characteristic set indication information; when the capability reporting indication information is used for indicating the capability information corresponding to the reporting capability identifier, the capability reporting indication information comprises capability identifier indication information; and when the capability reporting indication information is used for indicating to report the capability information corresponding to the first filtering parameter, the capability reporting indication information comprises the filtering parameter.

In one possible design, the capability reporting indication information includes capability identifier indication information, where the capability identifier indication information includes a first capability identifier, or the capability identifier indication information includes indication information used for indicating that first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier is reported.

In a possible design, the capability reporting indication information includes capability identifier indication information, where the capability identifier indication information is a first capability identifier or the capability identifier indication information is indication information used for indicating to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier.

Optionally, the capability reporting indication information may be filled in a reserved bit in the capability request, or may be filled in a newly added bit, which is not limited in this application.

Optionally, the capability reporting indication information may be used in combination with the RAT type to indicate the capability of the terminal device to report one or more RATs, that is, the capability indication information only takes effect on the requested RAT.

In one possible design, the capability complete set indication information is used to indicate the terminal device to report all capability information of the terminal device. The full capability information includes at least one of the following or a combination thereof: all band combinations supported by the terminal equipment, all characteristic set information supported by the terminal equipment, and all capabilities supported by the terminal equipment based on request reporting. It should be noted that, in the prior art, when reporting the capability, some specific capabilities are reported only upon request of the access network device. For example, for Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) carrier switching capability or measurement gap capability, reporting is performed only when the access network device sets a specific capability reporting indication in the capability request, and reporting is not performed if the capability request message does not include the specific capability reporting indication. In the application, if the capability request carries the capability complete set indication, the terminal device needs to report the capabilities based on the request report, and is not limited by the specific capability report indication. For example, if the capability request sets capability complete set reporting indication information, even if the capability request message does not carry an SRS carrier switching capability request indication and/or a measurement gap capability request indication, the terminal device needs to report the supported SRS carrier switching capability and/or measurement gap capability when performing capability reporting. The all capability information may further include a physical layer capability, a radio frequency capability, a layer 2 capability (for example, a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, a Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, or a Medium Access Control (MAC) layer of the terminal device), and the like, which is not limited in this application.

In one possible design, the full set of capabilities indication indicates that the full set of capabilities is within the access stratum protocol of the terminal device. This does not exclude that the terminal device performs filtering of capabilities at other protocol levels. For example, the terminal device has already performed certain capability filtering in the non-access layer, and the non-access layer transmits the filtered capability information to the access layer for reporting. That is, the full set of capabilities reported by the terminal device is the full set of capabilities obtained by the access stratum, and the full set of capabilities obtained by the access stratum is the filtered capabilities of the non-access stratum. For example, when the capability storage module of the terminal device loads the capability information to the access stratum baseband chip, the capability information may be filtered according to a frequency band supported by an operator to which the terminal device currently belongs, that is, the capability information in the access stratum baseband chip only includes the related capability of the frequency band supported by the operator to which the terminal device currently belongs.

Optionally, the capability complete set reporting indication information may be used in combination with the RAT type, and is used to indicate that the terminal device reports all capabilities of one or more RATs indicated by the RAT type. For example, assume that capability corpus reporting indication information is set in the capability request, and the RAT type is LTE RAT. At this time, the capability complete set reporting indication information requires the terminal device to report all the capabilities of the LTE, including the band combination and the feature set supported by the terminal device in the LTE system.

In addition, it should be noted that, in the prior art, for reporting the capability of the LTE RAT, if the access network device does not set the filtering parameter, the terminal device reports all band combinations supported by the access network device in the LTE system, but does not report the characteristic set, because the characteristic set is used when the MR DC works, the characteristic set does not have an effect on the single working mode of the LTE. And only when the filtering parameters set by the access network equipment contain LTE and NR frequency bands, the terminal equipment reports the LTE characteristic set. Thus, if the access network device needs to request the full LTE capability set, setting the filtering parameter may result in incomplete reported characteristic set information, but without setting the filtering parameter, the terminal device may not report the characteristic set information. In the application, the access network device can indicate the terminal device to carry the characteristic set information supported by the terminal device in the LTE when the capability is reported through the capability complete set indication information, so that the characteristic set information supported by the terminal device in the LTE system can be obtained without setting a filtering parameter.

In addition, in the prior art, for two RATs, MR DC and NR, if no filtering parameter is configured, the terminal device does not report any band combination and characteristic set information supported by the terminal device in the MR DC or NR system. In the application, the access network device may instruct, through the capability complete set indication information, the terminal device to report all band combinations and characteristic set information supported by the terminal device in the MR DC or NR system when reporting the capabilities of two RATs, that is, the MR DC and NR, so that the band combinations and characteristic set information supported by the terminal device in the MR DC and NR can be obtained without setting a filtering parameter.

In a possible design, the capability identifier indication information includes a first capability identifier, or the capability identifier indication information includes an indication information, where the indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to report first capability set information corresponding to an internally preconfigured first capability identifier. The first capability identifier and the first capability set information may be pre-configured (pre-stored) on the terminal device, for example, the first capability identifier and the first capability set information may be pre-configured by a device manufacturer when the terminal device leaves a factory. Optionally, before the access network device sends the capability request to the terminal device, the terminal device or the core network device may send the first capability identifier to the access network device through an RRC message. When the access network device sends the capability request, the first capability identifier may be carried to instruct the terminal device to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier. Or, when the access network device sends the capability request, the access network device may carry indication information for indicating the terminal device to report the first capability set information corresponding to the internally preconfigured first capability identifier, so that the terminal device determines, according to the indication information, that the capability information to be reported is the internally preconfigured first capability set information.

Alternatively, the first capability identifier pre-configured (pre-stored) on the terminal device may be related to the type of the terminal device. For example, when the models of the plurality of terminal devices are mate20 and the software versions are the same, the first capability identifiers corresponding to the plurality of terminal devices may be a. Therefore, the terminal equipment of the same type can report the capacity only once, and other terminal equipment can report the capacity identification only, so that the capacity reporting overhead is reduced. The first capability identifier may include a capability identifier preconfigured by the terminal device and a capability identifier allocated by the network device. The capability identifier preconfigured by the terminal device is a capability identifier allocated to the terminal device by a terminal device manufacturer through factory setting or later software update, and generally carries type identification information of the terminal device. For example, the capability of a UE with a model of mate20 and the same software version may correspond to a capability identifier X, and a part of bits in the capability identifier X may be used to indicate that the vendor is Huawei. The capability identifier allocated by the network device is the capability identifier allocated by the network device for a group of specific capabilities, and the terminal type identification information is not contained in the capability identifier.

Optionally, the first capability identifier may be used in combination with the RAT type in the capability request message, and instruct the terminal device to report the RAT capability part indicated by the RAT type in the capability set corresponding to the first capability identifier. For example, the capability reporting indication information includes a first capability identifier, and when the RAT type is NR, indicates the terminal device to report the capability part of NR in the capability set corresponding to the capability identifier.

In one possible design, the filtering parameter includes at least one of bandwidth information, frequency band information, or PLMN information. The bandwidth information, the frequency band information or the PLMN information may be an indication information or an identifier, respectively. The bandwidth information is used for indicating the terminal device to report all bandwidth information supported by the terminal device, the frequency band information is used for indicating the terminal device to report frequency band information on each bandwidth supported by the terminal device, and the PLMN information is used for indicating the terminal device to report frequency band related information used by the PLMN supported by the terminal device.

In a possible design, the filtering parameter may carry specific bandwidth information, frequency band information, or PLMN information, and at this time, the terminal device determines the range of the reporting capability set according to the bandwidth information, the frequency band information, or the PLMN information. For example, assuming that the bandwidth information carried in the filtering parameters includes band1+ band2+ band3, the terminal device may report all capability information related to band1, band2, or band 3. For another example, assuming that the filtering parameters include PLMN information, the terminal device determines all frequency bands included in the PLMN according to the PLMN information, and determines a band combination to be reported based on the frequency bands. It can be understood that the terminal device may determine all frequency bands included in the PLMN information according to a correspondence between PLMNs and frequency bands that is pre-stored or obtained from the network side.

In one possible design, the feature set indication information may be used to indicate that the terminal device carries feature set information supported by itself in the LTE system and/or the NR system when the capability is reported.

In the prior art, for LTE RAT, if the access network device does not carry the filtering parameter, the terminal device does not report the characteristic set information. Optionally, the capability information to be reported may further include other information such as a band combination, which is not limited herein.

Optionally, the characteristic set indication information may be used in combination with the RAT type, and instruct the terminal device to report the characteristic set information of the RAT indicated by the RAT type. For example, the capability reporting indication information includes characteristic set information, and when the RAT type is LTE, the terminal device carries the characteristic set information supported by the terminal device in the LTE system when performing LTE capability reporting.

602. The terminal device receives a capability request from the access network device.

After receiving the capability request, the terminal device may determine capability information to be reported according to the capability reporting indication information in the capability request. Wherein, the capability information is determined according to the capability reporting range.

In one possible design, the capability reporting indication information indicates to report capability information corresponding to the first capability identifier, where the capability information includes first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier; the capability reporting indication information indicates that capability information corresponding to the first filtering parameter is reported, and the capability information comprises second capability set information corresponding to the first filtering parameter; the capability reporting indication information indicates reporting of the characteristic set, and the capability information comprises characteristic set information supported by the terminal equipment; and/or the capability reporting indication information indicates a reporting capability complete set, and the capability information comprises all capability information supported by the terminal equipment.

Optionally, when the capability reporting indication information indicates to report the first capability identifier and the capability information corresponding to the first filtering parameter, the capability information to be reported includes first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier and second capability set information corresponding to the first filtering parameter.

In one possible design, the capability reporting indication information includes capability identifier indication information to indicate the terminal device to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier. Specifically, the capability identifier indication information includes a first capability identifier, or the capability identifier indication information includes an indication information, where the indication information is used to indicate the terminal device to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier preconfigured in the inside. And the terminal equipment determines that the first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identification is the capability information to be reported according to the first capability identification or the indication information. The first capability identifier and the first capability set information may be pre-configured (pre-stored) on the terminal device, for example, the first capability identifier and the first capability set information may be pre-configured by a device manufacturer when the terminal device leaves a factory. Optionally, the first capability set information may include a band combination supported by the terminal device and a corresponding characteristic set thereof. Optionally, the first capability set information may further include other capabilities supported by the terminal device (for example, SRS carrier switching capability and/or measurement gap capability), so that, for a capability that needs to be requested to be reported on the terminal device, the other capabilities included in the first capability set information may be directly reported without considering whether the capability request message carries the request information of the corresponding capability. For example, even if the capability request message does not carry the SRS carrier switching capability request indication and/or the measurement gap capability request indication, when the terminal device reports the capability, the terminal device needs to report the supported SRS carrier switching capability and/or the measurement gap capability. In this way, the capability information (i.e., the first capability set information) reported by the terminal device can be matched with the first capability identifier, thereby avoiding the problem that the acquired capability information cannot be matched with the first capability identifier due to the fact that the base station sets an inappropriate filtering parameter.

In one possible design, the capability reporting indication information includes capability corpus indication information. And the terminal equipment determines that the capacity information to be reported comprises all the capacities supported by the terminal equipment according to the capacity complete set indication information without considering the setting of other filtering parameters. All capabilities supported by the terminal device are specifically referred to in the related description of step 601.

In a possible design, the capability reporting indication information includes a first filtering parameter, and indicates the terminal device to report second capability set information corresponding to the first filtering parameter. The first filtering parameter may include at least one of bandwidth information, frequency band information, or PLMN information, and the terminal device determines, according to the first filtering parameter, that the second capability set information to be reported may include at least one of a band combination, characteristic set information, and a relevant capability of a PLMN frequency band supported by the terminal device. Reference may be made specifically to the description relating to step 601.

In one possible design, the capability reporting indication information includes characteristic set indication information. And the terminal equipment determines that the capability information to be reported comprises the characteristic set information supported by the terminal equipment according to the characteristic set indication information. Reference may be made specifically to the description relating to step 601.

603. And the terminal equipment sends the capability information to the access network equipment according to the capability reporting indication information.

Optionally, the capability information may be carried in a capability reporting RRC message, or may be carried in a capability information cell in another RRC message, which is not limited herein.

In a possible design, the terminal device may send the capability information to be reported to the access network device together, or, if the size of the capability information to be reported exceeds the maximum value of the capability reporting message of the terminal device, the terminal device may split the capability information to be reported among a plurality of capability reporting messages and send the capability reporting messages to the access network device.

For example, assuming that the capability information to be reported includes all capabilities supported by the terminal device in the NR system (i.e. NR capabilities supported by the terminal device), the structure of the capability information may be as follows:

among them, the format of featurestopcombinations can be as follows:

for example, the format of featuresets (downlink) may be as follows:

NR band combinationlists are used to describe the band combinations supported by the terminal device in NR, where each band combination includes a specific band, for example, band combination 1 may include band1+ band2+ band 3. Of course, the terminal device may report through the structure when only one band is supported.

Where featuresetcombinations are used to describe the feature set information supported by the terminal device in the NR, the feature set information may include a feature set Combination list, which may include a plurality of feature set combinations (featurecombinations), as shown in table 1. Each characteristic set combination is used to indicate the capability supported on each band in one or more bandwidth combinations, such as the number of carriers, carrier bandwidth, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) capability, data processing capability (download, upload rate), maximum space division multiplexing capability or modulation and coding capability, etc.

TABLE 1

Wherein each combination of property sets may be a matrix type element. For example, assume that matrix 1 corresponds to bandwidth combination 1, e.g., matrix 1 is a combination of characteristic sets associated with a band combination of band a + band b + band c. As shown in equation (1), each row of matrix 1 corresponds to an uplink and downlink feature set identifier (featuretid) used by bandA, bandB, and bandC, respectively. The different rows represent different combinations of feature sets supported by the terminal device at this band combination.

Each feature ID corresponds to a set of physical parameters, which indicate capabilities supported on a corresponding band, such as the number of carriers, carrier bandwidth, MIMO capability, data processing capability, maximum space division multiplexing capability or modulation coding capability, and the like.

The LTE-capable capability information structure supported by the terminal device may refer to the above-described NR-capable capability information structure.

For example, assuming that the capability information to be reported includes all capabilities supported by the terminal device in the EN-DC system (i.e. the EN-DC capabilities supported by the terminal device), the capability information may be as follows:

the MR-DC band combination list is used to describe a band combination list supported by the terminal device in the EN-DC system, where the band combination list includes a band supported by the terminal device in the LTE system and a band supported by the terminal device in the NR system. FeatureSetCombinations include FeatureSetEUTRA and FeatureSetNR. featureseteutra includes feature set information supported by the terminal device in the LTE system, and featuresetnr includes feature set information supported by the terminal device in the NR system. The characteristic set information may refer to the above description, which is not described herein again.

The capability information structure of the NE-DC or the NGEN-DC supported by the terminal device may refer to the capability information structure of the EN DC capability described above.

In addition, in a possible design, if the capability request does not carry the capability reporting indication information nor the filtering parameters related to the base station, the terminal device may report all band combinations and feature set information supported by the terminal device in the corresponding RAT according to the RAT type. For example, if the requested RAT type is NR, the terminal device carries all band combinations and feature set information supported by the terminal device in the NR system when the NR capability is reported.

604. The access network device receives capability information from the terminal device.

The access network device may receive an RRC message sent by the terminal device, the RRC message including capability information of the terminal device.

605. And the access network equipment sends the capability information to the core network equipment.

The access network device may send the capability information to the core network device via a capability indication message.

606. The core network device receives the capability information of the terminal device from the access network device.

After the core network device receives the capability information sent by the terminal device through the access network device, the capability information of the terminal device can be stored, the terminal device does not need to report the capability of the terminal device for many times, and signaling overhead is saved.

Optionally, if the terminal device does not have a preconfigured capability identifier, or does not receive a capability identifier allocated by the network device, or if the core network device does not store the first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier preconfigured by the terminal device, after the core network device obtains the capability information of the terminal device, it may allocate a capability identifier (a second capability identifier) for the terminal device and send the capability identifier to the terminal device, where the second capability identifier corresponds to the capability information of the terminal device. The core network device may allocate the second capability identifier to the terminal device through non-access stratum (NAS) signaling, or the core network device may send the second capability identifier to the access network device, and the access network device sends the second capability identifier to the terminal device through RRC signaling. The terminal device may store the second capability identifier, and determine that the second capability identifier is related to the last reported capability information. Therefore, when the network requests the capability information of the terminal device again, the terminal device can send the second capability identifier without reporting the capability information again, and signaling consumption can be saved.

Based on the method provided by the embodiment of the application, when the access network equipment needs to acquire the capability information of the terminal equipment, the access network equipment can send a capability request to the terminal equipment, wherein the capability request comprises capability reporting indication information, and the capability reporting indication information is used for indicating a capability reporting range. And after receiving the capability request, the terminal equipment determines capability information according to the capability reporting range and sends the capability information to the access network equipment. Compared with the method that the access network equipment requests the capability information of the terminal equipment to set the filtering parameters, the filtering parameters are usually only related to the capability of the access network equipment, so that the terminal equipment cannot report the whole capability of the UE or the specific capability of the UE correctly or comprehensively. Based on the method provided by the embodiment of the application, the access network equipment can accurately indicate the capacity reporting range of the terminal equipment through the capacity reporting indication information so that the terminal equipment prepares to report the whole capacity or the specific capacity of the terminal equipment, and the problem that the whole capacity or the specific capacity of the UE cannot be accurately or comprehensively known due to the fact that the base station sets the improper filtering parameter is solved.

Further, the access network device may set capability reporting indication information for indicating at least one of reporting capability complete set, feature set, capability information corresponding to the capability identifier, or capability information corresponding to the filtering parameter. Therefore, when the network needs to acquire the whole capability of the UE or the specific capability of the UE (for example, the capability corresponding to the capability identifier of the terminal device), the capability reporting range of the terminal device can be accurately indicated through the capability reporting indication information, thereby avoiding the problem that the base station cannot correctly or comprehensively acquire the whole capability of the UE or the specific capability of the UE due to setting of an inappropriate filtering parameter.

As shown in fig. 7, the embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, as shown in fig. 7, including steps 701 and 708. The communication method comprises a terminal equipment capacity reporting method.

701. The core network equipment sends the first indication information to the access network equipment.

When the core network device determines that the capability information of the terminal device is not stored, the core network device may send first indication information to the base station, so that the access network device queries the capability information of the terminal device. For example, the core network device may send the first indication information to the access network device through an initial connection context setup message.

The first indication information is used for indicating at least one of a capability complete set request, characteristic set setting reference information, a capability reporting request based on a capability identifier or filtering parameter setting reference information.

In one possible design, the first indication information includes at least one of capability corpus indication information, characteristic set setting reference information, capability identification indication information, or filtering parameter setting reference information. For example, when the first indication information is used for indicating the capability complete set request, the first indication information may include the capability complete set indication information; when the first indication information is used to indicate the characteristic set setting reference information, the first indication information may include the characteristic set setting reference information; when the first indication information is used for indicating a capability reporting request based on the capability identifier, the first indication information may include capability identifier indication information; when the first indication information is used to indicate the filtering parameter setting reference information, the first indication information may include the filtering parameter setting reference information.

Wherein, the capability corpus indication information may refer to the relevant description of step 601. The capability identifier indication information may be used to indicate the first capability identifier, or the capability identifier indication information may be used to indicate the access network device to request the terminal device to report first capability set information corresponding to the internally preconfigured first capability identifier. Optionally, the capability identifier indication information may include the first capability identifier, or the capability identifier indication information may include an indication information, where the indication information may be used to indicate the access network device to request the terminal device to report first capability set information corresponding to the internally preconfigured first capability identifier. The filtering parameter setting reference information is used for determining filtering parameters, filtering parameter identifiers, indications of enabling specific filtering modes or filtering parameter indexes and the like. Optionally, the filtering parameter setting reference information may include a filtering parameter, a filtering parameter identifier, an indication of enabling a specific filtering manner or a filtering parameter index, and the like. Wherein, the filtering parameters can refer to the relevant description of step 601. The filtering parameter identifier or the filtering parameter index corresponds to the filtering parameter, and the corresponding relationship may be preconfigured on the access network device, or may be obtained through signaling interaction between the access network device and the core network device. The indication of enabling the specific filtering manner is used to indicate that the access network device uses specific filtering parameters in capability query, such as pre-stored filtering parameters consistent with the PLMN scope of the access network device. The characteristic set setting reference information may be used to determine characteristic set indication information, characteristic set identification or characteristic set index, or the like. Alternatively, the characteristic set setting reference information may include characteristic set indication information, characteristic set identification or characteristic set index, and the like. Wherein, the property set indication information may refer to the related description of step 601. The characteristic set identifier or characteristic set index corresponds to the characteristic set indication information, and the corresponding relationship may be preconfigured on the access network device, or may be obtained through signaling interaction between the access network device and the core network device.

In a possible case, before the core network device sends the first indication information to the access network device, the core network device may receive a first capability identifier reported by the terminal device, where the first capability identifier may be a capability identifier preconfigured by the terminal device or a capability identifier allocated by the network device. Optionally, the terminal device may report the first capability identifier to the core network device through NAS signaling, or the terminal device may report the first capability identifier to the access network device through RRC signaling, and the access network device sends the first capability identifier to the core network device. Optionally, the terminal device may determine a reporting mode according to the type of the first capability identifier, and when the first capability identifier is a capability identifier preconfigured in the terminal device, the terminal device may report the first capability identifier to the core network device by using NAS signaling; when the first capability identifier is the capability identifier allocated by the network device, the terminal device may report the first capability identifier to the access network device by using an RRC signaling, so that the access network device sends the first capability identifier to the core network device. The NAS signaling is encrypted signaling, and the RRC signaling is unencrypted signaling. Since the capability identifier pre-configured in the terminal device includes the feature information of the terminal device, such as a manufacturer identifier of the terminal device, the security of the feature information needs to be ensured by transmitting the capability identifier in an encrypted manner. The terminal device capability identifier allocated by the network device does not contain the characteristic information of the terminal device, and the access network device can acquire the first capability identifier as soon as possible by using the unencrypted RRC signaling. Wherein, the unencrypted RRC signaling may be an RRC connection establishment request message or an RRC connection establishment complete message. After the core network device receives the first capability identifier, if it is not possible to determine the terminal device capability corresponding to the first capability identifier, for example, it is determined that a mobile management function (AMF) network element or other network devices do not store the terminal device capability corresponding to the first capability identifier, the core network device may set first indication information for indicating a capability reporting request based on the first capability identifier. For example, the core network device may set that the first indication information includes capability identifier indication information, where the capability identifier indication information may include a first capability identifier, or the first indication information may include indication information used to indicate first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier, and be used to indicate that the terminal device is required to report the first capability set information corresponding to the internally preconfigured first capability identifier.

Optionally, if the core network device does not receive the first capability identifier sent by the terminal device, the core network device may set first indication information for indicating at least one of a capability complete set request, characteristic set setting reference information, or filtering parameter setting reference information. For example, the core network device may set the first indication information to include at least one of capability complete set indication information, characteristic set setting reference information, or filtering parameter setting reference information. Further, if the core network device determines that the terminal device does not have the capability identifier, the capability identifier may be allocated according to the query result.

702. The access network equipment receives first indication information sent by the core network equipment, wherein the first indication information is used for determining capability reporting indication information, and the capability reporting indication information is used for indicating a capability reporting range.

The first indication information and the capability reporting indication information have a corresponding relationship, and the corresponding relationship satisfies at least one of the following conditions:

the first indication information indicates first filtering parameter setting reference information, the capability reporting indication information indicates that capability information corresponding to the first filtering parameter is reported, and the first filtering parameter corresponds to the first filtering parameter setting reference information; the first indication information indicates that the first characteristic set sets reference information, and the capability reporting indication information indicates that the first characteristic set is reported, where the first characteristic set corresponds to the first characteristic set information setting reference information, and may be determined according to the reference information, for example; the first indication information indicates a capability reporting request based on a first capability identifier, and the capability reporting indication information indicates that at least one of capability information corresponding to the first capability identifier, a second characteristic set or capability information corresponding to a second filtering parameter is reported, where the second characteristic set or the second filtering parameter corresponds to the first capability identifier, and may be determined according to the first capability identifier, for example; the first indication information indicates a capability complete set request, the capability reporting indication information indicates at least one of reporting capability information corresponding to a capability complete set, a third characteristic set or a third filtering parameter, and the third characteristic set or the third filtering parameter corresponds to the capability complete set request, and may be determined according to the capability complete set request, for example.

It can be understood that the first indication information and the capability reporting indication information may indicate capability complete set reporting, feature set reporting, and reporting of capability information corresponding to the capability identifier or the filtering parameter. It should be noted that the specific content and format of the first indication information sent by the core network device to the access network device may be the same as or different from the specific content and format of the capability reporting indication information sent by the access network device to the terminal device.

In a possible design, the first indication information includes first filtering parameter setting reference information, and the capability reporting indication information includes a first filtering parameter corresponding to the first filtering parameter setting reference information. For example, when the first filtering parameter setting reference information includes the first filtering parameter, the capability reporting indication information includes the first filtering parameter. Or when the first filtering parameter setting reference information includes the filtering parameter identifier or the filtering parameter index, the capability reporting indication information includes the first filtering parameter corresponding to the filtering parameter identifier or the filtering parameter index. For example, multiple sets of filtering parameters may be configured in the core network in advance, for example, three sets of filtering parameters with the filtering parameter identifier A, B, C may be configured, and when the first indication information includes the filtering parameter identifier a, the capability reporting indication information includes the filtering parameter (the first filtering parameter) corresponding to the filtering parameter identifier a. Alternatively, the filtering parameter is an indication that a specific filtering manner is enabled, and the access network device determines to start a specific filtering parameter, such as a filtering parameter common to PLMNs, according to the indication. These specific filtering parameters may be preset in the access network device, and the access network device may set the filtering parameters accordingly.

In one possible design, the first indication information includes first characteristic set setting reference information indicating that the access network device requests the terminal device to report the first characteristic set in the capability request. In one possible design, when the first characteristic set sets the reference information as the characteristic set indication information, the capability reporting indication information includes the characteristic set indication information. Or when the reference information is set as the characteristic set identifier or the characteristic set index by the first characteristic set, the capability reporting indication information includes first characteristic set indication information corresponding to the characteristic set identifier or the characteristic set index.

In one possible design, the first indication information includes capability indication information, and the capability reporting indication information includes at least one of capability indication information, second characteristic set information, or second filtering parameters. Illustratively, when the first indication information includes a first capability identifier, the capability reporting indication information includes the first capability identifier, or includes indication information for instructing the terminal device to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier, or includes second characteristic set information determined according to the first capability identifier, or includes a second filtering parameter determined according to the first capability identifier.

In one possible design, the first indication information includes capability corpus indication information, and the capability reporting indication information includes at least one of capability corpus indication information, third characteristic set indication information, or third filtering parameter. For example, when the first indication information includes the capability complete set indication information, the capability reporting indication information may include the capability complete set indication information, or the capability reporting indication information may include third characteristic set indication information or third filtering parameters determined according to the capability complete set indication information.

703. The access network device sends a capability request to the terminal device.

The specific process can refer to the relevant description of step 601.

704. The terminal device receives a capability request from the access network device.

The specific process can refer to the relevant description of step 602.

705. And the terminal equipment sends the capability information to the access network equipment according to the capability reporting indication information.

The specific process can refer to the related description of step 603.

706. The access network device receives capability information from the terminal device.

The specific process can refer to the relevant description of step 604.

707. And the access network equipment sends the capability information to the core network equipment.

The specific process can refer to the related description of step 605.

708. The core network device receives the capability information from the terminal device.

The specific process may refer to the relevant description of step 606.

Optionally, if the terminal device does not have a preconfigured capability identifier, or does not receive a capability identifier allocated by the network device, or if the core network device does not store capability information corresponding to the capability identifier preconfigured by the terminal device, after the core network device obtains the capability information of the terminal device, it may allocate a capability identifier (a second capability identifier) for the terminal device and send the capability identifier to the terminal device, where the second capability identifier corresponds to the capability information of the terminal device. The core network device may allocate the second capability identifier to the terminal device through NAS signaling, or the core network device may send the second capability identifier to the access network device, and the access network device sends the second capability identifier to the terminal device through RRC signaling. The terminal device may store the second capability identifier, and determine that the second capability identifier is related to the last reported capability information. Therefore, when the network requests the capability information of the terminal device again, the terminal device can send the second capability identifier without reporting the capability information again, and signaling consumption can be saved.

In the prior art, when a network needs to acquire all capabilities of a UE or specific capabilities of the UE (for example, capabilities corresponding to a capability identifier of a terminal device), an access network device sets a filtering parameter when requesting capability information of the terminal device, and the filtering parameter is usually only related to the capabilities of the access network device, so that the network cannot correctly or comprehensively acquire all capabilities of the UE or the specific capabilities of the UE. Based on the method provided by the embodiment of the application, the access network equipment can accurately indicate the capacity reporting range of the terminal equipment through the capacity reporting indication information, the terminal equipment can determine the capacity information according to the capacity reporting range, and the problem that the base station cannot correctly or comprehensively acquire all the capacity of the UE or the specific capacity of the UE due to the fact that the improper filtering parameters are set can be solved.

Further, the core network device may set first indication information for indicating at least one of a capability complete set request, a characteristic set setting reference information, a capability reporting request based on a capability identifier, or a filtering parameter setting reference information; the access network device may determine capability reporting indication information according to the first indication information, where the capability reporting indication information is used to indicate at least one of capability information corresponding to a reporting capability complete set, a characteristic set, a capability identifier, or capability information corresponding to a filtering parameter. Therefore, the capability reporting range of the terminal equipment can be accurately indicated through the capability reporting indication information, and the problem that the base station cannot correctly or comprehensively know all the capability of the UE or the specific capability of the UE due to the fact that the base station sets the improper filtering parameters is solved.

Moreover, the first indication information can ensure that different access network devices set consistent capability reporting indication information when performing capability query, or can ensure that the same access network device sets consistent capability reporting indication information when performing capability query on different terminal devices, so that terminal devices with the same capability can report the same capability information. Further, the core network device may allocate the same capability identifier to the terminal devices with the same capability, so that the terminal device may only send the capability identifier when reporting the next capability, thereby saving signaling consumption. And the core network equipment can uniformly store the capability information corresponding to the capability identification without respectively storing the capability information of each terminal equipment, so that the storage space of the core network equipment can be saved.

In the embodiments provided in the present application, the method provided in the embodiments of the present application is introduced from the perspective of access network devices, terminal devices, and core network devices, and their interaction with each other. In order to implement the functions in the method provided in the embodiment of the present application, the access network device, the terminal device, and the core network device may include a hardware structure and/or a software module, and implement the functions in the form of a hardware structure, a software module, or a hardware structure plus a software module. Whether any of the above-described functions is implemented as a hardware structure, a software module, or a hardware structure plus a software module depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the technical solution.

In the case of dividing each functional module by corresponding functions, fig. 8 shows a schematic diagram of a possible structure of the apparatus 8 according to the foregoing embodiment, where the apparatus may be an access network device, and the access network device includes: a transmitting unit 801 and a receiving unit 802. In this embodiment of the present application, the sending unit 801 is configured to send a capability request to a terminal device, where the capability request includes capability reporting indication information, and the capability reporting indication information is used to indicate a capability reporting range; a receiving unit 802, configured to receive capability information from a terminal device, where the capability information corresponds to a capability reporting range; the sending unit 801 is further configured to send the capability information to the core network device. In the method embodiments shown in fig. 6 and fig. 7, the sending unit 801 may be configured to support the access network device to perform the processes 601 and 605 in fig. 6; processes 703 and 707 in fig. 7. The receiving unit 802 may be configured to support the access network device to perform the process 604 in fig. 6; processes 702 and 706 in fig. 7.

In the case of dividing each functional module according to each function, fig. 9 shows a schematic structural diagram of a possible apparatus 9 according to the foregoing embodiment, where the apparatus may be a terminal device, and the terminal device includes: a receiving unit 901 and a transmitting unit 902. A receiving unit 901, configured to receive a capability request from an access network device, where the capability request includes capability reporting indication information; a sending unit 902, configured to send the capability information to the access network device according to the capability reporting indication information. In the method embodiments shown in fig. 6 and fig. 7, the receiving unit 901 may be used to support the terminal device to execute the process 602 in fig. 6; process 704 in fig. 7. The sending unit 902 may be configured to support the terminal device to perform the process 603 in fig. 6; process 705 in fig. 7.

In the case of dividing each functional module according to each function, fig. 10 shows a schematic diagram of a possible structure of the apparatus 10 according to the foregoing embodiment, where the apparatus may be a core network device, and the core network device includes: a transmitting unit 1001 and a receiving unit 1002. A sending unit 1001, configured to send first indication information to an access network device, where the first indication information is used to indicate a capability reporting range; a receiving unit 1002, configured to receive capability information of a terminal device from an access network device, where the capability information corresponds to a capability reporting range. In the method embodiments shown in fig. 6 and fig. 7, the sending unit 1001 may be configured to support the core network device to execute the process 701 in fig. 7. The receiving unit 1002 may be configured to support the core network device to perform the process 606 in fig. 6; process 708 in fig. 7.

The division of the modules in the embodiments of the present application is schematic, and only one logical function division is provided, and in actual implementation, there may be another division manner, and in addition, each functional module in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated in one processor, may also exist alone physically, or may also be integrated in one module by two or more modules. The integrated module can be realized in a hardware mode, and can also be realized in a software functional module mode. For example, in the embodiment of the present application, the receiving unit and the transmitting unit may be integrated into the transceiving unit.

The methods provided in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, may be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When loaded and executed on a computer, cause the processes or functions described in accordance with the embodiments of the invention to occur, in whole or in part. The computer may be a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, computer network, network appliance, user equipment, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored on a computer readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer readable storage medium to another, for example, from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wire (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.). The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device, such as a server, a data center, etc., that incorporates one or more of the available media. The usable medium may be a magnetic medium (e.g., floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., Digital Video Disk (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., Solid State Drive (SSD)), among others.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the embodiments of the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the application. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the embodiments of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application is also intended to encompass such modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A method of communication, comprising:

the access network equipment receives first indication information sent by core network equipment, wherein the first indication information is used for determining capability reporting indication information;

the access network equipment sends a capacity request to the terminal equipment, wherein the capacity request comprises the capacity reporting indication information, and the capacity reporting indication information is used for indicating a capacity reporting range; the capability reporting indication information is used for indicating reporting capability complete sets or capability information corresponding to the capability identifiers;

the access network equipment receives the capability information from the terminal equipment, wherein the capability information corresponds to the capability reporting range;

and the access network equipment sends the capability information to core network equipment.

2. The communication method according to claim 1, wherein:

3. The communication method according to claim 2,

and the first indication information and the capability reporting indication information have a corresponding relation.

4. The communication method according to claim 3, wherein the correspondence between the first indication information and the capability reporting indication information satisfies at least one of:

the first indication information indicates first filtering parameter setting reference information, the capability reporting indication information indicates that capability information corresponding to first filtering parameters is reported, and the first filtering parameters correspond to the first filtering parameter setting reference information;

the first indication information indicates that reference information is set for a first characteristic set, the capability reporting indication information indicates that the first characteristic set is reported, and the first characteristic set corresponds to the reference information set for the first characteristic set information;

the first indication information indicates a capability reporting request based on a first capability identifier, the capability reporting indication information indicates that at least one of capability information corresponding to the first capability identifier, a second characteristic set or capability information corresponding to a second filtering parameter is reported, and the second characteristic set or the second filtering parameter corresponds to the first capability identifier;

the first indication information indicates a capability complete set request, the capability reporting indication information indicates at least one of reporting capability information corresponding to a capability complete set, a third characteristic set or a third filtering parameter, and the third characteristic set or the third filtering parameter corresponds to the capability complete set request.

5. The communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the capability reporting indication information includes capability identifier indication information, where the capability identifier indication information is a first capability identifier or the capability identifier indication information is indication information for indicating reporting of first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier;

the receiving, by the access network device, the capability information from the terminal device includes:

and the access network equipment receives the capability information from the terminal equipment, wherein the capability information comprises first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identification.

6. A method for reporting terminal capability is characterized by comprising the following steps:

the method comprises the steps that terminal equipment receives a capacity request from access network equipment, wherein the capacity request comprises capacity reporting indication information; the capability reporting indication information is determined according to first indication information sent by core network equipment, and the capability reporting indication information is used for indicating reporting capability information corresponding to a capability complete set or a capability identifier;

and the terminal equipment sends the capability information to the access network equipment according to the capability reporting indication information.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the method comprises the following steps:

the capability reporting indication information indicates reporting capability information corresponding to a first capability identifier, and the capability information includes first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier;

the capability reporting indication information indicates to report capability information corresponding to a first filtering parameter, wherein the capability information comprises second capability set information corresponding to the first filtering parameter;

the capability reporting indication information indicates reporting a characteristic set, and the capability information comprises characteristic set information supported by the terminal equipment; and/or

The capability reporting indication information indicates a reporting capability complete set, and the capability information includes all capability information supported by the terminal equipment.

8. The method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the terminal capability report is sent to the terminal,

the capability reporting indication information includes capability identifier indication information, where the capability identifier indication information is a first capability identifier, or the capability identifier indication information is indication information used for indicating to report first capability set information corresponding to the first capability identifier;

the terminal equipment sends the capability information to the access network equipment according to the capability reporting indication information, and the capability information comprises:

and the terminal equipment sends capacity information to the access network equipment according to the capacity identification indication information, wherein the capacity information comprises first capacity set information corresponding to the first capacity identification.

9. A method of communication, comprising:

the core network equipment sends first indication information to the access network equipment, wherein the first indication information is used for indicating a capability reporting range; the first indication information is used for indicating a capability complete set request or a capability reporting request based on a capability identifier;

and the core network equipment receives the capability information of the terminal equipment from the access network equipment, wherein the capability information corresponds to the capability reporting range.

10. The communication method of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises:

the core network device receives a first capability identifier from the terminal device, wherein the first capability identifier corresponds to first capability set information, and the first capability set information is preconfigured.

11. The communication method according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the method further comprises:

and the core network equipment sends a second capability identifier to the terminal equipment, wherein the second capability identifier corresponds to the capability information of the terminal equipment.

12. An apparatus comprising a processor and a memory;

the memory is configured to store computer-executable instructions, and the processor executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory to cause the apparatus to perform the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, or to cause the apparatus to perform the terminal capability reporting method according to any one of claims 6 to 8, or to cause the apparatus to perform the communication method according to any one of claims 9 to 11.

13. A communications apparatus, comprising:

a receiving unit, configured to receive first indication information sent by a core network device, where the first indication information is used to determine capability reporting indication information;

a sending unit, configured to send a capability request to a terminal device, where the capability request includes the capability reporting indication information, and the capability reporting indication information is used to indicate a capability reporting range;

the receiving unit is further configured to receive capability information from the terminal device, where the capability information corresponds to the capability reporting range; the capability reporting indication information is used for indicating reporting capability complete sets or capability information corresponding to the capability identifiers;

the sending unit is further configured to send the capability information to a core network device.

14. A communications apparatus, comprising:

a receiving unit, configured to receive a capability request from an access network device, where the capability request includes capability reporting indication information; the capability reporting indication information is determined according to first indication information sent by core network equipment, and the capability reporting indication information is used for indicating reporting capability information corresponding to a capability complete set or a capability identifier;

and the sending unit is used for sending the capability information to the access network equipment according to the capability reporting indication information.

15. A communications apparatus, comprising:

a sending unit, configured to send first indication information to an access network device, where the first indication information is used to indicate a capability reporting range; the first indication information is used for indicating a capability complete set request or a capability reporting request based on a capability identifier;

a receiving unit, configured to receive capability information of a terminal device from the access network device, where the capability information corresponds to the capability reporting range.

16. A readable storage medium, characterized by comprising a program or instructions which, when executed by a computer, implements the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, or implements the terminal capability reporting method according to any one of claims 6 to 8, or implements the communication method according to any one of claims 9 to 11.